Method and means for making show cards and the like



Nov. 6, 1923. 1,472,973

W. C. GRAHAM ET AL METHOD AND MEANS FOR MAKING SHOW CARDS AND THE LIKE Filed April 11. 1922 INVENTOR. Walton C G raham A TTORNEY.

and Julius FRasmusseQn.

Patented Nov. 6, W23.

warren e. en

1e. AND JULIUS 1:. BASHUSSEN, 01? DENVER, COLORADO.

METHOD AND MEANS FOR MAKING SHOW CARLOS AND rm '2.

Application filed April 11, 1822. serial No. 551,789.

To all whom it may comm.

Be it known that we, WALTON C. GRAHAM and JULIUs F. RASMUSSEN, citizens of the United States, residing at Denver, in the 6 county of Denver and State of Colorado,

have invented certain new and useful improvements in Methods and Means for Makin Show Cards and the like, of which the following is a specification.

Our invention relates to a method and means for making show-cards, signs, maps and other objects, and its primary object is to provide a simple and convenient method of attaching cut letters and other 1 characters upon a surface in true alineinent with each other and at the proper distances apart. n

'W e attain this object by the provision or cut letters, figures and other characters made 29 of paper or other flexible material coated on one side with an adhesive, and formed with detachable extensions which, in edge-to-edge alinement, determine the spaces between the letters in the formation of a word or phrase.

In co-operation with these characters, is used a holding element adapted to place the adjoining letters in alinement by engagement with the end-edges of their extensmns and provided with means to clamp the same against relative displacement.

An embodiment of the means employed for carrying our invention into pract1ce, has been shown in the accompanying drawings in the several views of which like parts are similarly designated and inwhich Figure 1 represents a plan view of the holding element with a plurality of letters in place thereon;

Figure 2, a section on the line 2-2, Flg- Figure 3, a. similar section showing the first action in the process of attaching the letters on the holder, to the surface of a sign or other object;

Figure 4, a similar view illustrating the second step of the process;

Figure 5, an edge View of the sign and one of the letters showin the final step in the process of attaching t e letters to a surface,

after they have been detached from the holdin element;

iigure 6, a face view of the completed si%1, drawn to a reduced scale; and

igure 7, an enlarged face new of two of the character members of the device in their original condition.

Referring more specifically to the drawings, the reference numerals 2 designate the character members of the device cut or stem ed out of paper or other flexible materi and each com osed of a body portion 3 cut in the form 0 a letter or other character and an extension 4: which in the opera tion,functions as a stub or tab to. place the characters in alinement and at the right distances apart. 7

The character members are coated on their reverse side with an adhesive substance and their bdy portions are detachable from their extensions along lines indicated at 5 in Fig 'ure 7 of the drawings.

The holding element consists of a straightedged rule 6 which in parallel and spaced relation to its edge 8, has an abutment shoulder 7 which in the operation, functions to aline the character members as will hereinafter be more fully described.

In the construction shown in the drawing the shoulder is formed through the medium of a strip 9 of comparatively narrow width which issecured to the rule'by rivets 12 or other suitable fastening means. Mounted on the strip 9 are a plurality ed equidistantly arranged clamping members 10 which project beyond the forward edge thereof to engage with a plate 13 of glass, mica, py'rolin or other transparent material placedbetween said edge and the cor responding edge of the rule.

The plate-is narrower than the s ace be tween the edges of the strip and t e ruler upon which it is supported and its width is substantially equal to that of the extensions of the character members used in connection with the instrument.

The clamps hereinbefore referred to each consist of a U-shaped blade 14 of resilient metal fastened at one of its ends to the strip 9 and extended beyond the forward edge thereof to en age with the surface of the transparent p ate 13.

An upright stud 15 on the strip extends loosely through an aperture in the upper portion of the spring, and a nut 16 on the threaded upper end of the stud bears upon the spring to force its extended portion into clamping engagement with the plate.

he transparent plate may if so denied,

Eli

be provided with a graduated scale 17 to facilitate the placement of the letters relative to the center or other given point of the straight edge of the rule, or to permit of wider or narrower spacing of the letters than provided for by their stubs or extensions.

In the operation of our invention, the character members required to form a given word or phrase are placed in the proper order with their stubs or tabs between the clamping plate and the surface of the rule. The contact of the lower edges of the extensions with the abutment shoulder places the characters in alinement, and the engagement of the end edges of the same with each other, spaces the letters at the proper distanies apart.

The characters thus arranged are fastened against relative displacement by pressing the resilient clamp-members against the plate through the medium of the nuts, and owing to the similarity in width of their stubs and the plate, the lower edges of their body portions will be in a line coincident with the forward edge of the plate.

In order to fasten the characters in their proper arrangement to the surface of a show-card, map or other object, the rule on which they are held is placed on thesurface in a measured position, after which the body portions of the character-members pro ecting beyond the stralght edge of the rule, are pressed to engagement with thesurface by means of a suitable tool such as is shown 1n broken lines at 18 in Figures 3 and 4 of the drawings.

When the letters are fastened by moisture.- their gummed sides are wetted before the pressure is applied or in case they are fastened by the application of heat, the tool by which they are pressed to the surface of the sign is heated by any suitable method.

An electrically heated iron of small proportions such as commonly used in laundry work. is well adapted for the purpose.

The engagement of the softened adhesive coatings of the character members with the surface of the card causes the major part of their body portions to adhere thereto, as shown in Figures 3 and 4, it being apparent that their ends at which they adjoin their extensions, are not capable of engaging with the surface until the characters are detached from the holder.

This is readily accomplished by drawing a knife or other cutting tool along the straight edge of the clamping plate, thereby severing the characters from their stubs and permitting of removal of the instrument as indicated in Figure 4.

The ends of the letters may now be fastened to the surface by the same means employed to fasten their other portions, as shown in Figure 5, and this final operation completes the work which as shown in aavaevs Figure 6, will resent an a pearance closel resezimbling thigt of a ha d-painted shod car An outstanding feature of our invention is that it enables persons unskilled in the art of lettering or designin to make show cards and other signs w ich in the form, spacing and alinement of their characters are equal to the best hand-painted work. and it will be apparent that after the letters have been attached to the card, they may be ornamented by shading or illuminations, and that our improved method is therefore productive of results equal in appearance to any style of hand-painting and invariably perfect as to the spacing and alinement of the letters and produced in but a fraction of the time otherwise required.

Having thus described the appliance used in our method of lettering signs, show-cards, maps and other objects, we desire it understood that variations in details of construction and the arrangement of the parts may be resorted to without departing from the spirit of the invention.

The stubs or extensions of the charactermembers may, for example, be divided from the body portions of the same by perforated or otherwise weakened lines, thereby permitting of their being detached from the characters without the use of a knife or other cutting tool.

Any kind of adhesive can be used to fasten the letters to the mount, the adhesive can be softened by either heat or moisture, and where the last mentioned method is employed, any suitable liquid may be applied to either the gummed surface of the letters or to the surface upon which they are fastened.

It will furthermore be evident that by lengthening the stubs of the character-members so that they extent beyond the straight edge of the rule, the body portions of the same may be fastened on the mount in one operation, and that if so' desired, the stubs maybe detached from the holding element before they are separated from the fastened characters.

The transparency of the clamping plate of the holding element is a convenience in that it enables the. operator to see the arrangement of the stubs relative to each and the abutment shoulder along which they are alined, but it will be apparent that the same result ma be attained although perhaps in a less suitable manner by perforatin plate or by notching the edge at which it ad'oins the abutment.

at we claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. The method of making show-cards and the like, consisting in assembling cut characters into a word or phrase, fastening the assembled characters partially upon a surthe face by an adhesive, then detaching the characters from the means b which they were held in assemblage, and nally fasten-- ing the other parts of the characters to. the surface.

2. An appliance for making show-cards and the like, comprising in combination, cut character-members each having a gummed body portion and an extension at an end thereof a rule, and means for holding an assemblage of the character members on the rule by engagement with their extensions and with their body portions projecting beyond an edge of the rule.

3. An appliance for making show-cards and the like, comprising in combination, cut character-members each having a gummed body rtion and an extension at an end thereo a rule, a plate parallel to an edge thereof and adapted to engage the extensions of a plurality of character-members assembled on the rule with their body portions projecting beyond said edge thereof, and clampin means co-operating with said plrfte to hol the members in p ace on the ru e.

4. An appliance for making show-eards and the like, comprisin in combination, cut character-members eac having a gummed body portion and an extension at an end thereof, a rule, a plate parallel and in spaced relation to an edge thereof, and adapted to engage the extensions of a plurality of character-members assembled on the rule with their body portions projectingbeyond said edge thereof, and clampin means co-operating with said plate to ho d the members in place on the rule.

5. An appliance for makin show-cards and the like, comprising in com bination, cut character-members eac having a gummed body portion and an extension at an end thereof a rule having an abutment shoulder parallei to an edge thereof, a plate parallel to said edge, adapted to engage the extensions of a plurallty of the character-members assembled on the rule in engagement with said shoulder and with their body portions projecting beyond said ed e, and clamping mean's co-operating with t e late to hold the members in place on the r e.

6. An appliance for making show-cards and the like, comprising in combination, cut character-members each having a gummed body rtion and an extension at an end thereo a rule havin an abutment shoulder parallel to an edge t ereof, a. plate parallel to said edge adapted to engage the extensions of a plurality of the character-members assembled on the rule in engagement with said shoulder and with their body ortions projecting beyond said edge, said p ate bearing a graduated scale along its outer acters by end-to-end engagement, a rule havin an abutment shoulder parallel to an edge t ereof, a transparent plate parallel to said edge, adapted to engage the extensions of a luralit of the character-members assemb ed on t e rule in engagement with said shoulder and with their body portions projecting beyond said edge, and clamping means co-operating with the plate to hold the members in place on the rule.

8. An appliance for making show-cards and the like, comprising in combination, out character-members having gummed body portions and extensions at an end thereof, which are proportioned to space the characters b end-to-end engagement, and an element a apted to hold a plurality of the character members in assemblage, by engagement with their extensions exclusive of their body portions.

9. As a new article of manufacture, a character'member adapted to be assembled with other similar character-members into a word or other combination of characters,

and consisting of a gummed body portion and a detachable extension at an end of said portion, adapted for end-to-end engagement with'a corresponding extension of the body portion on an adjoining character-member. 10. In combination, a plurality of character-members each having separate from the others a gummed body portion and a detachable extension at an end thereof, the extensions of the character members being adapted to space said members in a word or other combination of characters by end-toend engagement.

11. As a new article ofmanufacture, a

character-member adapted to be assembled with other similar character-members into a word or other combination of characters, and consisting of a mmed body portion cut in the form of a etter or other symbol and a detachable strip at an end of said portion, adapted for end-to-end enga ment with a corresponding strip on the y portion of an adjoining member.

In testimony whereof we have aflixed our signatures.

WALTON C. GRAHAM JULIUS F. RASMUSSEN. 

